YouTuber I Do Cars documents engine dissections so curious minds and mechanical enthusiasts can learn from them. Several Blue Oval engines have ended up on his metaphorical slab – including a 7.3L V8 Godzilla and a blown-up 1.5L EcoBoost I4 – and this time, he’s gotten his hands on an ailing Ford 4.6L V8 engine, pointing out what caused it to fail.
This Ford 4.6L V8 was pulled out of a 2006 Ford F-150, one that I Do Cars “torture-tested.” In short, they blew it up on purpose. Worry not – the engine was already damaged and was no good anyway. The pickup was vandalized when someone drained all its oil, and when its owner tried to drive it to work the next day, it broke down. The engine was “condemned,” and it wasn’t worth fixing, which was how it ended up in I Do Cars‘ hands.
Whoever took care of the engine while it was still in the 2006 Ford F-150, well, neglected to take care of it at all. It went quite a long time between oil changes, and when it did get maintenance, it was given cheap oils that did little to protect it against normal wear and tear. The teardown reveals that the stress test did cause quite a bit of internal damage, but it still held up surprisingly well.
All told, the Ford 4.6L V8 engine tried to compress some liquid, which was what did it in. It has a few bent rods, which explains why they can’t get it to turn over after the stress test. However, while the engine ultimately failed, it really wasn’t due to any fault of its own. The fact that the team wasn’t able to destroy a rod is a testament to the durability of the Ford 4.6L V8 engine.
Sure, it’s not fuel efficient, and it has known problems like excessive oil consumption, but all said and done, the Ford 4.6L engine is a solid piece of equipment.
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